Season's Change
by The Not-So-Good Doctor
Summary: Fall has arrived and Stephanie decides to go out for a walk to admire the beautiful leaves. What happens when she accidentally gets hurt and is saved by the last person she ever expected?
1. Chapter 1

Greetings! First, I'd like to say that I've taken some liberties with LazyTown's surroundings. Instead of fields there's a nice, lovely forest. Secondly, this is the first story I've written in a long time. A _very_ long time. I'm out of practice so please bear with me. More after the story...

LazyTown is owned by LazyTown Entertainment.

_Season's Change_

_Chapter One_

* * *

The crisp sounds of crunching leaves were the only sounds pervading the air as Stephanie walked thought the forest just outside of LazyTown. '_Fall had finally lived up to its name'_, she thought as she glanced around. The ground was covered with many brightly colored leaves and the surrounding trees looked bare with just a few stragglers clutching to their branches. She smiled and gave a little twirl, sending the leaves at her feet flying.

"Its such a beautiful day! Probably one of the loveliest since I came here," she murmured to herself. It had been many years since she had first came to LazyTown. She had just celebrated her 17th birthday not too long ago. Stephanie had grown to be a lovely young lady; her hair darkening to a vivid shade of red. Her clothes hadn't changed much over the years. She still loved wearing bright pink striped dresses, though they were of a different cut.

She took her time walking through the forest, admiring her surroundings. In a nearby tree two little squirrels fought over an acorn. She laughed at the very sight of the two. '_If only my friends where here to see this', _she thought. Everyone had spent less and less time together as the years went by. They had grown apart over the years, though they still remained friends. '_It's a shame they didn't want to go on this walk with me. I would have asked Sportacus but he would have turned this into a race and I wanted to enjoy the fallen leaves'. _She watched as the last leaf on an old oak slowly drifted towards the ground, landing without a sound.

The trees around her began to spread apart and soon she came upon a small clearing with a little pond at its center. The water was very clear and sparkled in the midday sun. Around the pond was a well-worn trail, probably made by animals. A small stretch of the shoreline was sprinkled with large moss-covered rocks. Little fish swam in its shallow waters, chasing after each other in a game of cat and mouse. '_Oh, they're so cute! I wander if I can catch one?' _She wandered around the pond watching the little school of fish. '_I wonder way I haven't seen this place before? This would be a great place to swim during the summer!' _She continued to follow the little fish across the rocky shoreline. She had to take special care as she walked across the mossy rocks.

Her foot slid on a particularly slick rock and she let out a little shriek. She tumbled backwards and slammed the side of her head on a rock. She let out a gasp of pain as darkness enveloped her.

* * *

Robbie Rotten was having a rotten day, not that that was different from any other day. He seemed to live in a perpetual state of rotten luck. The poor fellow had woken from his midmorning nap to the sounds of construction crews working throughout the town, ripping up asphalt and repaving the roads. He practically fell out of his orange over-stuffed chair at the sounds of the jack hammer above.

"I meant to do that!", he said as he straitened his vest.

"This is ridiculous! One would think that they would warn people about upcoming construction! That idiotic Mayor! This is all his fault!" He was started to feel the beginnings of a headache coming on. "There's never a moments peace! If its not those annoying kids, it something else!"

He moved to his chemistry set, looking at the mess of chemicals it contained. "I've got to come up with a plan to get rid of those noisy nuisances above. Aha!" He gave a wave of his hand. "I know w- ...no that wouldn't work." Another loud crash sounded from the over-world.

"I can't concentrate. This noise...it's to noisy! I've got to get out of here." With that he left his underground lair and headed out into the woods, away from the noise. He walked aimlessly around, attempting to string together a plan that would get rid of his problems _and _keep the blue elf from spoiling everything. "That's a problem in itself!", he said to himself.

He glanced around, attempting to get his bearings. Someone had recently walked the same path he was on. The leaves had been kicked up and moved around. "Its probably that Sportakook! Running about, probably trying to shove his 'sports candy' down the throats of anything that moves!" He paused. " I feel sorry for the animals."

He continued to follow the trail, now hiding behind trees. He spotted a clearing up ahead. Slowly, he moved behind a large tree at the edge of the clearing; being careful not to give himself away. He was about to peek around the tree when he heard a shrill shriek. He jumped at the sound, giving a little yell of his own. "Hvaða var þessi?", he whispered to himself , slipping into his native Icelandic.

He looked around. The clearing seemed totally devoid of life. '_That was a girls voice_...' Then he spotted her, laying like a ragdoll over the rocks. '_Pinky_...?' He moved out into the open and crept towards her. It was then that he saw the small pool of blood gathering beneath her head. Fear flashed across his face.

"Núll , helvíti", he whispered.

He checked her pulse. '_It's a bit weak._'He ripped off two lengths of fabric from the ends of his pants. He then found the wound and began to apply pressure. "Pinky, can you hear me? ...Stephanie?" She stirred slightly but remained unconscious. He continued to apply pressure until the blood loss eased. He then tied the other length of fabric around her head to hold the makeshift gauze in place. He gave her a quick glance over for other wounds and found none.

He scooped her up into his arms, careful to support her wounded head and made his way back into the woods. The gears in his head clinked to life and he smirked.

'_I've got a plan.'_

* * *

I fear I may have botched the Icelandic translation. If anyone knows Icelandic, I'd appreciate it if you could tell me if there even remotely correct.

-Hvaða var þessi? What was that?

-Núll , helvíti. Oh, hell.

I only have a general idea of where this story is going at the moment. I was originally planning to do this as a comic or doujinshi of some sort but it occurred to me that I haven't the skill to do it. So, please tell me what you think of this.


	2. Chapter 2

Season's Change

Chapter Two

* * *

Darkness.

It surrounded her for what seemed like an eternity. Stephanie floated in in the dark æther, her senses deprived. Fuzzy slits of color split through the darkness as she opened her eyes. She blinked; her eyes adjusting to the bright lights beside her. '_I feel horrible.' _She felt as if an anvil had hit her in the head just like in those Saturday morning cartoons she used to watch.

She was vaguely aware that she was laying on something soft. '_What happened?' _She glanced around . '_And where am I?'_

It was certainly not her room. She lay covered in a purple four poster bed. The rest of the room was sparsely decorated and covered in dust. The dark walls had no decorations save for a few paintings of what seemed to be clockwork people. A small wooden bedside table with a twisted lamp laid at her left. A chair sat next to her bed as if someone had been sitting at her side. The door across from her bed was partially opened.

Her memories suddenly flooded back. '_I fell_', she though as reached up to touch the bandages wrapped about her head.

A small noise brought her attention to the foot of the bed. A fuzzy black and white cat jumped onto the bed and let out a soft 'meow'. The cat lazily waltzed across the bed and began to rub against her hand. "Hey there little guy." It began to purr as she scratched it under its chin. "Are you the little kitty that used to always get stuck in that tree? Who do you belong to?", she whispered. The cat purred in reply. A smile lit up her face.

The unearthly quiet of the house was interrupted by the sound of heels clicking on the hard wood floor. Stephanie's jaw dropped when she saw who walked through the door. It was none other than Robbie Rotten.

"Close you're mouth, Pinky, or a bird's going to nest in there," he sneered.

"R-Robbie?"

He ignored her shocked look. "How's you're head doing?"

"Um..." She looked uncertain. "It hurts a lot. I suppose I must have hit it really hard when I fell. Do I have a bruise?"

He snorted. "No, you've got a large gash in your head. Can you sit up?" She tried to sit up but dizziness pushed her back into the soft bed.

"Turn your head, I want to see how that gash is doing." Stephanie turned her head and he took the bandages off. He made a clicking noise with his tongue as he examined the wound. "You're going to need stitches." With that, he walked out of the room.

'_I've never had stitches before...' _She absentmindedly scratch the cats head. '_Why's he doing this? He wouldn't help anyone for _any_ reason.' _

He soon returned with a small medical kit. He opened it and took out a fresh stitching needle and silk thread.

"Um, Shouldn't I go to a doctor to have that done?", she asked.

"HA! Those fools haven't a clue what their doing. They're only in it for the money. You only truly know what your doing after you've had to stitch yourself up. I bet they never did _that _in medical school! " He threaded the needle. "Are you allergic to anesthesia or any other medicine?" She shook her head. "Hold still." He gave her a shot of local anesthesia and got to work.

She watched his face as he stitched. Gone was his usual nasty expression. It had been replaced with a look of the utmost concentration. His hands moved with a gracefulness that did not match his usual clumsy self. _'This is so weird...', _she thought_. _Before Stephanie knew it, the stitches where complete.

He reached back into the kit, took out a small pack of medicine and handed it to her. "Take these after the anesthesia wears off."

"Alright." She paused momentarily, gathering her thoughts. " If you don't mind me asking, where am I?"

"I would think that would be obvious." He waved his arms dramatically. "You're in one of the spare bedrooms in my lair."

'_I should have guessed that!' _She mentally kicked herself. Her next question took Robbie by surprise.

"Why are you doing this?"

He hesitated.

"Because."

" 'Because' ...?"

"Just because."

She glared at him and he let out a barking laugh. '_That look really doesn't suit her...' _

"Villain or not, I couldn't have left you to bleed out over those rocks." She nodded, accepting that explanation. Without another word, he packed up his kit and headed for the door.

"Hey, Robbie?"

He glances back at her.

"Thanks."

He fidgeted, obviously being uncomfortable with being thanked. He mumbled something that sounded a bit like 'You're welcome' and left the room, closing the door behind him.

Stephanie smiled and suppressed a laugh.

The cat moved to her lap, curled up and promptly fell asleep. It was not long before sleep claimed her as well.

* * *

Robbie all but ran from the room. _'That rattled me far more than it should have. Drat the girl's kindheartedness.' _He sneered to himself in contempt.

He staggered a ways down the hall before leaning his back against the wall and slowly, he slid down to the floor.

'_She's ok.' _

Weariness crept over his face.

'_Had it been anyone else, I would have left them to die.'_

* * *

__

I hope your enjoying the story thus far! I know I'm having a great deal of fun writing it.

_I'm having a bit of a debate with myself as to where this story is heading. This has the makings to be either a friendship __or _a Stephanie/Robbie story. Both of which I find to be in great shortage here.

_As always, LazyTown is owned by LazyTown Entertainment._


	3. Chapter 3

_Season's Change_

_Chapter Three_

* * *

Robbie laid against the wall for quite some time, letting his tense shoulders relax for the first time in days. He sighed. _'She really had me worried. That was a close call._' Apparently, the wound had been far more severe than he had let on. Stephanie had been unconscious for the better part of two days.

Somewhere in the underground home a clock began to chime, signaling that it was midnight. Robbie cringed with every sound it made. He sighed again, dragging himself to his feet. "I've got work to do."

He wandered into his lab, doing his best to ignore his fluffy orange chair. _'Don't look at the chair. There is _no_ chair. Don't look at the chair!'_ Between looking after Stephanie and the earsplitting noise of the construction crew, he hadn't gotten a bit of sleep. He desperately needed it, but that would have to wait. He grabbed a tool box (in his signature colors) and began to fill it with a variety of different tools and doodads.

"This is taking far longer than I thought it would. It such a simple plan", he groaned. "With the girl missing, Sportakook will certainly be out looking for her. Haha-ha! That will give me time to sabotage the construction equipment." He smirked at the last part.

He walked back to the spare bedroom, slowly opening the door halfway and peeked into the room. Stephanie laid peacefully asleep on the bed with the cat. He motioned to the cat, who carefully detangled himself from the girl's arms and made his way out of the room.

Robbie knelt beside the cat, who seemed more interested in staring at the floor than anything else . "Kettlingur, I want you to keep her in this room. Don't let her out." The cat gave him a heartbreaking look. "Don't give me that look! Its for her own good. If anything happens get me right away, understand?" The cat 'meowed' in response and went back into the room. He quickly shut the door, grabbed the tool box and made his way up to the surface.

* * *

LazyTown looked a great deal different in the moon light. The brightly colored houses looked bleached under the pale moon. The city walls cast almost unearthly shadows on the surrounding buildings and ground. In the day, LazyTown bustled with life, but during the night a still eeriness swept over the whole town. This was Robbie's favorite time. Most nights he would prowl about the town, enjoying the unnatural quiet.

Robbie waltzed down the city streets, not bothering to hide himself. He basked in the moonlight, momentarily forgetting what he had came to do. He glanced at the houses around him, their windows hidden in darkness. _'I wonder what they would all think if they knew the most hated man in this town wandered around the town at night?' _he mussed. He looked back at his tool box. '_Now's not the time for such thoughts..._'

He soon came a cross the first bit of equipment: a roller and paver. He carefully looked over the machines, figuring out the best plans of action for utterly crippling both of them without leaving any obvious damage.

'_I've got to get this done quickly. Half the town will be awake by sun up._'

He quickly set to work cutting out important parts from deep within the machines. He then began rewiring both machines so that they would most certainly catch on fire as soon as the ignition turned. He finished by draining the oil out of the machine and removing all the safety equipment.

He did the same for every bit of equipment he came across. By the time he was finished his normally clean clothes were covered in oil, dirt and bits of asphalt.

'_These clothes are ruined. Perhaps I should have worn something else...' _He gathered up his supplies, and began to head back to his billboard. "I can finally get some sleep!"

As he walked back through the town, he spotted a light coming on in one of the windows. Robbie instantly ducked down behind a nearby wall. He took his pocket watch out and checked the time. '_Fifteen after three...Its still too early for anyone to be up..._' He glanced over the wall to get a better look at the house. It belonged to the Mayor. Multiple voices trickled from the window.

'_What's this? What is he up to?_'

Robbie hastily moved underneath the window so that he could better hear the conversation.

"Have you found her?", said the anxious voice of the Mayor.

The next voice spoke with a heavy accent. "Nothing, Mayor. I've combed over the whole town and even the forests! I've found no sign of her."

"Oh dear!"

Robbie sudden shuddered. '_Sportacus! I had hoped he would have been searching out of town now. He's too close for comfort._' He turned his attention back to the conversation.

" Do you think someone took her?"

Silence.

"Oh, no! Sportacus! You must find her!"

"I'll keep looking. If she's here I'll find her." Then, the sounds of footsteps and a door shutting. Robbie held his breath and did his best to blend in with the darkness. Sportacus quickly ran by and was soon out of sight.

'_So they think someone took her? I suppose that's true to some extent. Perhaps I should lead them in another direction? Haha._'

He quietly got up and went to Stephanie's window. He pried it open and entered. '_Where is that blasted thing?' _He rummaged through her extremely pink room till he found what he was looking for: her Diary.

'_I bet that dimwitted Mayor never even bothered to check her room_.' Robbie ripped out the last page and grabbed the pink ink pen from her dresser and began to write.

_Dear Uncle, _

_I can't stand it here anymore. I've decided to run away. Don't come looking for me._

_Stephanie  
_

He stifled a laugh. _'Perfect!_' He placed the note onto her dresser then pocketed the Diary.

'_Perhaps I should grab a few other things to make this look more convincing._' Robbie looked around the room trying to find something she would have been likely to take. He ended up taking her purse, some clothes and a few other things he had seen her carrying around town.

Robbie slipped back out the window and closed it. He yawned and checked his watch again. It was nearly four in the morning. He took his time on his way back to his lair, keeping a keen eye out for any sign of Sportacus or his airship.

Once underground, he tossed his tools and Stephanie's stuff aside before he laid down in his over-stuffed chair for some well deserved sleep.

* * *

I love writing for Robbie. He's such a devious guy. I've had this idea for a while that the LazyTown Kitten is actually Robbie's. Of course, he wouldn't admit it if anyone asked him. I was originally going to name the cat after the Icelandic word for cake till I found out what the word was. There's no way I'd name a cat 'Kaka', so I settled on Kettlingur (Kitten). So original!

HazzardGrl - Thank you! I really like those as well. Hugs are amazing things!

melissa Ivory - Thanks! I'm somewhat new to the fandom. I've browsed around and mostly found Sportasteph and Sport/Robbie stories, which aren't to my liking. I probably missed a number of Robbie/Steph stories. If this does turn out to be a full blown Robbie/Steph story, I'll try to end it well.


End file.
